Another four polio cases reported from Fata

ISLAMABAD - Another four polio cases were reported from the tribal belt Saturday, taking the tally to 88. Refusal to vaccination is reported to be the cause of emergence of these wild type1 polio cases.The affected are identified as 28-month-old Janoor from Miran Shah of North Waziristan, four-months old Tuba from the suburb urban area of Peshawar, four-month-old Abdur Rehman from Mardan and 10-month-old Faridullah Shah from Bannu. Out of total 88 polio cases, 66 are from Fata (55 NWA, 5 SWA, 4 Khyber and 2 from FR Bannu) , 15 from KPK (5 Peshawar, 9 Bannu, 1 Mardan) and 7 from Sindh capital Karachi.The parents of the victim refused to allow vaccination for their child when the anti-polio campaign began in the area. Refusal rates in troubled areas of Karachi have risen as families are reluctant to be associated with the polio drive for fear of a backlash.There have been increasing refusals in Sindh particularly during the last year. Most of them came either from Pakhtun families and a few districts which have witnessed some militant attacks in the recent past. Pakistan is one of only three countries in the world where polio is still endemic but efforts to stamp out the crippling disease have been hit by repeated attacks on health teams.